UN: Destruction of Syrian Chemical Program Is Underway

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BEIRUT (AP) — A U.N. official says international inspectors have begun destroying Syria’s stockpile of chemical weapons and the machinery used to create it.

The official couldn’t confirm what specifically was destroyed, but said that by the end of Sunday, a combination of both weapons and some production equipment would be put out of order.

He spoke anonymously because of the matter’s sensitivity.

In this photo, which AP obtained from Syrian official news agency SANA, has been authenticated based on its contents and other AP reporting, President Bashar Assad gestures as he speaks during an interview with Italy’s RAI News 24 TV, at the presidential palace in Damascus, Syria, Sunday, Sept. 29, 2013. Assad says his government will abide by last week’s U.N. resolution calling for the country’s chemical weapons program to be dismantled and destroyed. (Credit: AP)

Inspectors are tasked by the U.N. to dismantle and ultimately destroy Syria’s chemical weapon program by mid-2014.

The push to destroy Syria’s chemical weapons program came after an August attack near Damascus that killed hundreds of civilians.